Luminous indicating device



V. C. THORNE. LUMINOUS [NDICATING DEVICE. APPLICATION man FEB. 5. 1917.

1";342,777. PatentedJune 8,1920.

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WITNESS IN VENT 0R A2471, am I V1670 c. TMf/YE UNITED STATES PATENT,OFFICE.

VICTOR G. THORNE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIG-NOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,TO

THE COLD LIGHT MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC., A CORPORATION OF COLO- RADO.

LUMINOUS INDICATING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 8, 1920.

Application filed February 5, 1917. Serial No. 146,644.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, VICTOR C. THORNE, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing in the county, city, and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Luminous IndicatingDevices, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to appliances for attaching luminous indicatingmaterial to any object to be indicated. l

The invention relates to a practical and simple luminous device andmeans for securing such devices to such articles as screw heads,electric light switch plates, doors and in fact to any object which itis desired to indicate.

' Figure 1 represents a door plate having a key hole'therein', and aluminous device applied to the plate to locate the key hole. Fig. 2 isacross section. through Fig. 1 showing the method of fastening thedevice to the plate. Figs. 3 and 4 are cross sections through two formsof the device. Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross section of the luminousdevice showlng the lumlnous materlal secured in place. Figs. 6 to 12inclusive show modifications of the means for fastening the luminousdevices to objects to be illuminated and will be generally describedhereafter.

The luminous device 1 consists of a plate having a luminous materialsecured therein and a facing or window through which the luminous rayscan pass and be visible. I prefer to use as the luminous device a holderor cup 2 made of thin flexible metal as brass having a celluloid facing3 with a radium luminous material 4 firmly-secured against the innersurface of the celluloid. The entire device is flexible and will notcrack or break the celluloid or disarrange the parts of the device. Asshown in Fig. 5 the luminous material 4 is secured between the plate 2and the celluloid facing 3, the flanges on the plate being turned downagainst the celluloid to hold the facing 3 against the plate 2.

This luminous device may then be arched to give it a convex shape asshown in Fig. 5.

The holder I prefer to use to attach this device to switch plates ordoor plate screws or nails, consists of a cup 6 with fingers 7 y oraflange 8 thereon. The cup 6 has a depressed or tapered portion 13provided with tion 13 forming a seat 15 for a screw or nail head 16 andthe attaching point thereof passing through the perforation 14.

The method of assembling the device is as follows:

The screw is placed into the'cup 6 and then driven home, the headthereof being accessible to a tool through the opening in the cup. Theluminous device 1 is then secured under the flange 8.

In Fig. 6 flexible fingers 12 are shown on the cup 6 which may be bentdown (as shown-in Fig. 7) over the luminous device. The bottom of thecup 6 is flat so that it may be soldered or glued to any object.

Fig. 8 shows wings 18 for securing the cup over objects to be indicated,(as shown in Fig. 9).

Fig. l0'shows the cup provided with pins 19 for securing it to Wood andlike material.

The pins 19 are stamped out of the center of the cup. as shown in Fig.11.

Fig. 12 illustrates a screw head 20 with a recess therein and theluminous button 1 secured to the recess. The slots 21 in the screw headand on each side of the button are elevated above the button and permitof access to the screw with a tool without injury to the luminousdevice.

' I claim:

1. In a luminous indicating attaching device, a cup, 2. seat in the cupto receive securing means, said securing means being separable from thecup and a luminous device secured in the cup over the securing means.

2. In a luminous indicating device, in

combination, a luminous element and means for attaching said element toan object to be indicated, said element comprising a luminous materialo'na suitable carrier and a translucent facing over said material, saidattaching means comprising an independent plate, a seat in the plate toreceive securing means to attach the plate to an object to be indicated,the luminous element being secured to the plate, said securing meanslying beneath the luminous element and covered thereby.

3. In a luminous indicating device, in combination, a luminous elementand means for attaching said element to an object to be indicated, saidelement comprising a metal base and side walls upstanding from saidbase, a luminous material between said walls, a translucent facing oversaid material and secured over said luminous material by crimping saidwalls thereover, said'attaching means comprising an independent plate, aseat in the plate to receive securing means to attach the plate to anobject to be indicated, the luminous element being secured to the plate.

4;. A luminous indicating device comprising a thin receptacle, saidreceptacle having a bott om and an uninterrlipted and continuous sidewall and a luminous material in the receptacle,-a facing of flexiblematerial in the receptacle and over the luminous material, the said sidewalls being continuous and being crimped downward to confine the saidflexible material in the receptacle and the luminous materialthereunder, said securing means being separable from the cupand theluminous device secured in the cup over the. securing means.

5. In a lumlnous 1nd1cat1ng device, a substantially round thin buttoncomprising a thin base, upturned continuous side walls, a

translucent covering over the base and a luminous material between thecovering and base, the whole comprising a unitary device, the luminousmaterial being confined and firmly secured between the base and facingand thereby held against displacement or movement by contact with saidfacing, and

means for attaching said button to an object to be indicated, said meanslying beneath the button whereby when the button is secured to an objectthe attaching means are covered thereby. v

6. A luminous indicating device, in combination, a substantially thinround flat button comprising a thin metal base, upturned walls from saidbase, said walls being continuous and uninterrupted, a luminous materialbetween the walls, a translucent facing over the material, the wallsbeing crimped down over the facing and in close engagement therewith,the luminous matemy hand.

VICTOR C. THORNE.

